Are my tyres safe?
Friday 16th April 2021
A good question to ask. An important question, too. How safe your tyres are directly correlates to not only the performance, but the safety of your vehicle and passengers. That’s why, here at Formula One Autocentres, we know how important tyre safety education is – so we’ve put together this handy guide which outlines the most important tyre safety tips to bear in mind.
Learn more about how to keep your tyres safe, and prolong their tyre life for longer.
Tyre safety tips
Tyre tread depth
Is your tyre tread depth meeting the minimum legal requirements?
If not, you could receive a £10,000 fine and potentially lose your licence. That’s why it’s so important to understand what the minimum tyre tread depth is, and how to check.
Firstly, the legal tyre depth across both the UK and Europe is 1.6mm – however, it is thought that a tyre tread depth of around 3mm is enough to warrant a replacement tyre. Some of the ways to check tyre tread depth include using tyre tread wear indicators, using a tyre tread depth gauge – or, one of the easiest ways is using a 20p coin. Our guide on how to check tyre tread depth explains this in more detail.
Tyre pressure
Are your tyres over or underinflated?
If so, this could be affecting not only your tyre’s performance, but it could create uneven tyre wear, alignment issues, an increase of your fuel consumption and more.
- Overinflated tyres: this can lead to uneven tyre wear in the middle section of your tyre. This would then increase the contact between the tyre and the road and would be directed solely to the middle of the tyre.
- Underinflated tyres: this can affect the wear and tear of the shoulders (the outsides) of your tyres, as naturally they would dip to meet the road.
Learn what your tyre pressure should be, and how to put air in your tyres from our detailed guides.
Tyre damage
Are your tyres suffering from uneven tyre wear?
This could be affecting the safety and performance of your vehicle. As mentioned above, uneven tyre wear can occur through a number of ways – one of those being incorrectly inflated tyres. However, the age of the tyres and the driving habits you exhibit can also have a direct affect on your tyre life.
For example, if you are driving over potholes, hitting the kerb frequently and spinning the wheels, this is likely to cause damage to the tyres – which can wear down unevenly over time.
Tyre safety with Formula One Autocentres
Now you know the basic tyre safety tips for keeping tyre damage at bay, learn more tips on how to improve your tyre life now – including choosing the right tyres for you, considering the weight of your vehicle and more.
Ready to buy new tyres? Locate your nearest Formula One Autocentres, and get booked in for your tyre fitting today.
